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Show DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE 4 Tuesday, February 26, 2013 New device locates faulty wiring in aircraft SHAKEOUT Blake Belden and emergency management at the U, said the local government was pleasantly surprised to see the U taking part. "We evacuated over 250 buildings all at once," Shaub said. "It was the first time something like that had ever happened at the U." Shaub is hopeful participation will increase this year. Last year, she estimates they had more than ii,000 participants, based on the number of giveaway bags distributed at each of the gathering points. She's preparing for 15,000 in April. Utah is known for its mountains, but the mountains exist because we live on a fault line. Below the Wasatch Mountains is a fault line upon which the majority of Utahns live, said Kristine Pankow, associate director of the U seismograph stations. Looking at this fault historically shows a 7-magnitude earthquake every few hundred years, but there are also some risks of 5.5 to 6.5-magnitude all along the 1-15 corridor. "It's a when, not an if," Pankow said. The ShakeOut is in place to help prepare and remind the community what to do if an earthquake hits. People like Shaub and Pankow want the public to think about their preparedness, which includes many elements. For starters, emergency management will continue to highlight actions to take when an earthquake hits because of the constant turnover each year at the U. Once evacuated, potential issues include how to contact family members, where to get water and food and where to go for medical assistance. That is why emergency management is looking to set up a medical triage by Rice-Eccles Stadium, Shaub said. Also, they are planning where a convenient area would be for everyone to gather and reunite. The stadium has the highest likelihood because of its many restrooms, plumbing and administrative features for providing food and water. Different systems of accounting for people are being tested this year. Even though no building is entirely earthquake proof, Shaub said the U's buildings have come a long way in a short time in becoming more earthquake safe. She is more concerned about what humans do with the buildings, like making sure exits are clear of any possible falling obstructions. At each of the nine assembly areas around campus there will be kits filled with toothbrushes, toothpaste and water bottles provided by funds from the President's Office to remind people to make their own 72-hour kits, Shaub said. "Living in Utah is a blessing and a curse," she said. "We don't get subtle reminders like California's quakes or annual events like hurricane season. We aren't jolted on an annual basis, and time quiets nerves." The drill takes about 45 minutes in its entirety, and she hopes everyone will take it seriously and utilize the opportunity to make individual and family plans. "If you don't practice, when it starts happening you won't know what to do," Pankow said. c.webber@ chronicle.utah.edu trical engineering, said when he was researching different universities he was impressed Furse found a way to test electrical systems for faults while they were in use. The concept went against everything he had been taught. "I didn't even know that was possible," he said. Furse said LiveWire's technology is critical to commercial aviation because airplanes act differently on ground than they do in the air. She compared it to the way a car malfunctions when you are driving, and then seems normal when you take it to the mechanic. "Most failures with aircraft happen while the plane is flying, and that's because a plane on the ground is just sitting there, nothing is vibrating," she said. "There's no moisture, there's no bending or flexing because of things moving in the wings. So understandably there would be more problems when the plane is flying. Those problems often don't occur on the ground." Since a plane cannot power down in the air, LiveWire's technology is currently the only way to test electrical systems in a plane while in flight. Because LiveWire can be used on anything with wiring, it has a wide range of applications. Their list of clients is growing and includes companies like Volvo and Boeing. One of the first successful applications of LiveWire was on an oil drilling platform off the coast of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The platforms were about five miles apart, and one of the platforms fed power to the others. The cable transferring the power broke under the ocean. "It's hundreds of thousands of dollars an hour to have an oil-drilling platform completely down," Furse said. "So one of our folks flew over there with an earlier version of the handheld [device], plugged it in and, within just a very short period of time [of] a few minutes, was able to locate the fault on a five-mile cable to within 10-12 feet. They were able to repair it and get their oil drilling platform back up. That's a pretty big deal. The fact that that was a fivemile cable, and we were that accurate, we were pretty excited." LiveWire is a young company, but unlike many other young companies, it is debt-free. This is largely because the federal government invested millions of dollars in LiveWire's research and development. "We've been able to do the entire development without venture capital," Furse said. "That's been on purpose so that we've been able to take the time that was needed to do the research well, and do it right." b.belden@chronicle.utah.edu ing when Fisher would be back. "People had a lot of questions and they couldn't answer any of them," she said. "They're telling us now it's an open case and they don't know how long it's going to take. They are trying to make the best for everyone and have to be in compliance with the law." Rasmussen said his students are very preoccupied with the situation. "The response to this has been outrage," he said. "It's been the topic of discussion the last two classes. I have to get them to stop talking about Jim to talk about the lecture." Rasmussen said it seems the situation has been taken out of context, but he would not put it past anybody to say something they regret by accident. "He's not a sexist," Rasmussen said. "He's not disrespectful toward his students. He can be a tough teacher at times, but every student I've had that's had a class from him loves the man." According to students in the class, the 0E0/AA has met with the class to walk them through the investigation process. According to the faculty code of conduct, when a written, signed complaint is filed against a faculty, student or staff member, the governing parties, including the vice president and department heads, are in charge of researching, hearing and deciding what action should be taken. In the case of an illegal discrimination or sexual harassment complaint, a case is opened by 0E0/AA and an investigation takes place to determine the truth of the complaint and also the outcome of the employment of the person whom the complaint was brought against. At the end of the investigation, if the complaint has not been resolved, an opportunity will be presented for either party to request a hearing in front of a committee. The 0E0/AA policies outline it will take the "responsible steps to protect the rights and, to the extent appropriate, the confidentiality of all parties involved, including individuals who in good faith report perceived misconduct." Because of the confidentiality of the matter, both the 0E0/AA and Fisher have declined to comment. The student who filed the complaint was also unavailable for comment. m.clark@ chronicle.utah.edu STAFF WRITER A start-up company at the U has developed technology that could soon be implemented in every commercial aircraft worldwide. The company, LiveWire Innovation, makes a device that detects dangerous wiring problems, commonly called "faults." What makes LiveWire's technology unique is the ability to detect faults while power is running through an electrical system. Cynthia Furse, associate vice president for research at the U, pioneered this technology and has been developing it since 1998. "I thought about this actually for years before the idea just came to me," Furse said. "I could use this other signal. It's actually the same signal that's in your cell phone, the same signal that's used by GPS, and use that on the wires instead, because that can be used on wires or lines without interfering with them." Lucas Thomson, a LiveWire employee and graduate student in elec- SUSPENSION Continued from page 1 of those things that, as a student we sit back and never get a say in anything," Merry said. "I always sit back and watch things unravel, but it's when you're passionate about something [that] you fight." Merry said one thing about Fisher is he shows his personality early on. "I've noticed that with him he shows his true colors the first few classes, how he acts, the environment, his jokes, he shows it all right at the beginning," Merry said. "If you don't like it there's so much time to withdraw." Merry said when people from the 0E0/AA came to their class, the most frustrating part was not know- C) om PHOTO COURTESY RUSS BERGSTROM LiveWire Innovation, a start-up company at the U, has developed a device that detects dangerous wiring problems, commonly called "faultsf "VI 141 I 4'14% he 40 pi 11 1 1 1 11oil 41 1 4 1114 IN I N344 Oki - 14 111 .11111411111-11 . FIN, 1141 1 It 104 1,4 1111 4r:Rialk. II PERSONAL MONEY 4111 MANAGEMENT CENTER mm U, , THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH u fr WI 1 4 11 " a 1 111.- -ma -ter i lli 11 114111111114 1 44% . 1111t. PERSONAL MONEY MANAGEMENT FAIR WED, FEBRUARY 27th, 10 AM TO 2PM UNION BALLROOM The Student Media Council is now accepting applications for Editor-in-Chief of The Daily Utah Chronicle. (801) 581-7540 or jake.sorensen@utah.edu for more information or to obtain an application. Completed applications are due Thursday, February 28 by 4 pm. Featuring Funny Money Inc with James Cunningham Noon to 1 pm You'll laugh your pants off and learn how NOT to lose your shirt U ,yomieri 7rtimpiiiiiied -Ceidef THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH Continued from page 1 THE OBERT C. AND GRACE A. TANNER HUMANITIES CENTER PRESENTS THE TANNER LECTURE ON HUMAN VALUES MICHAEL J. SANDEL HARVARD PROFESSOR Participants include: K-Ute with financial tunes Downloading your credit report for free (bring a flash drive) Utah Unclaimed Property Division (see if you have money out there!) Campus Bookstore with books about managing your finances Utah Educational Savings Plan (learn how to save $ for your kids) University Federal Credit Union, Financial Aid and Scholarships, Utah Council on Problem Gambling, Department of FCS, IDAs Casino Capitalism: Gambling, Investing, and the Ethics of Speculation Wednesday, February 27, 2013 1 7:00 p.m. Kingsbury Hall 11395 E. Presidents Circle The University of Utah This event is free, but tickets are required. Please call Kingsbury Hall Box Office at 801-581-7100. www.thc.utah.edu 801-581-7989 |
